Conservation of the endemic Azraq killifish in Jordan

Summary

Aphanius sirhani, Jordan's only endemic vertebrate, was once so abundant in the Azraq Oasis that 1970s surveys described its numbers as endless, but continuous water extraction drove it to endangered status by 1989 and presumed extinction by the mid-1990s. Rediscovered in very low numbers in 2000, it was listed Critically Endangered by the IUCN in 2004, prompting the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature to launch a long-term habitat restoration and re-introduction program still running today. Baseline surveys from 2000 to 2002 fed a first stocking to secure founder individuals, followed by low-scale captive breeding in aquariums and concrete pools, then a large-scale program using isolated, semi-natural, alien-free habitats, with additional genetic stock sourced from aquarium hobbyists who had earlier collected specimens from Azraq and a safeguard population maintained at the Sharjah Wildlife Centre in the UAE. In parallel, a large-scale rehabilitation scheme rebuilt the wetland to resemble its pre-extraction 1960s ecosystem at a scale matching available water, expanding open water area from just 0.02 percent to 5.5 percent of the original oasis, with shallow zones, nesting sites, and exclusion of invasive species such as tilapia. Three trial releases preceded a large-scale release, with population size, structure, age distribution, and alien species levels monitored annually since 2002. The project rated itself Successful, citing the establishment of a viable population, strong organizational commitment, and growing national and international support for the species.